We're All Pretty Smart. So Why Do We Make Such Dumb Mistakes?

[seoulsearch]

Hey Everyone,

When I read the posts here in Singles, I see so much intelligence, experience, and compassion. I feel very privileged to be among such a talented, Godly peer group.

But have you ever wondered why, if we can all write with so much clarity, passion, and knowledge... And if 240 people "like" all the super-incredible-wisdom we're sharing... WHY THE HECK DO WE ALL KEEP MAKING SUCH STUPID MISTAKES OVER AND OVER AGAIN???!!!

I'll gladly use myself as an example. I was raised a Christian all my life. Grew up in the church and parochial schools, Vacation Bible school, Sunday school, Sunday Vacation Bible school, etc. I knew what was right and wrong from top to bottom, left to right.

But boy, did I ever make some stupid mistakes. And I still keep making them!!! Why do we: put off that huge stressful task that we could easily accomplish a little at a time, but NNNOOOO, we keep putting it off until the last minute and then nearly kill ourselves in the last hours before the project is due. We know that big exam is 3 weeks away... but spending another 2 hours here on CC instead of studying is just too tempting to resist. We know we shouldn't ingest that particular substance, but it just LOOKS SO GOOD or helps us calm down, chill out, or "come out of our shell."

We KNOW that person or situation is wrong for us/dangerous/will cause us to compromise our faith, but hey, I can handle it--besides, I work so hard, I deserve to have a little fun.

We all know better. We all preach to others about what's right and wrong. We all impress the world with our vast storage of what we know and what we've been through.

So why on earth are we repenting for the same sins we go back to over and over again? Can we just chalk it up to sin? Not caring? Ignorance? Rebellion?

If we all know so much, why don't we do what we're so good at talking about?

(As usual, the poll is anonymous and multiple choice.

 

[arwen83]

Why do we: put off that huge stressful task that we could easily accomplish a little at a time, but NNNOOOO, we keep putting it off until the last minute and then nearly kill ourselves in the last hours before the project is due. We know that big exam is 3 weeks away... but spending another 2 hours here on CC instead of studying is just too tempting to resist.

YEP! Pretty much

 

[PopClick]

~Preemptively bans Tommy4christ from the thread~

 

[Jullianna]

When we are the subject in the middle of the frame, it's far more difficult to see the whole picture and be objective enough about a thing to find a solution as quickly as we otherwise might, huh?

Fortunately, we know a God who sees all of it all the time, so eventually we stop listening to the voices in our own heads and listen to His, get over it and move on.

 

[zeroturbulence]

I'm not really a smart guy. I just play one on the internet.

 

[Ugly]

Because we're obviously not as smart as we think we are.

This question makes me think of bad American Idol singers. ''Well, my mom says i can sing like an angel, what do you mean i sound like someone stepped on a cat? i can sing!''.

When all indicators point to something, you don't say the opposite must be true. Such as, if i'm smart, why do i do dumb things?

 

[seoulsearch]

Because we're obviously not as smart as we think we are.

This question makes me think of bad American Idol singers. ''Well, my mom says i can sing like an angel, what do you mean i sound like someone stepped on a cat? i can sing!''.

When all indicators point to something, you don't say the opposite must be true. Such as, if i'm smart, why do i do dumb things?

Good points, Ugly.

It always intrigues me though... Let's take, for example, Solomon. The wisest man who ever lived. And even he says, "Three things are beyond me, four I can't understand... The way of a man with a young woman."

This was the smartest guy on the planet. No one could say that he was stupid in any way, shape and form.

And yet somehow, he wound up with 300 wives and 700 concubines.

I have always wondered if God created romantic love between men and women as "an equalizer"--the wisest man on earth may get it wrong. But the poorest, most uneducated man alive may find one woman and be faithful to her for the rest of his life.

Even the most intelligent people do some pretty dumb things, especially when it comes to romantic attraction.

 

[Chrissy77]

I'm not really a smart guy. I just play one on the internet.

Oh hush!!

 

[AsifinPassing]

Hey Everyone,

When I read the posts here in Singles, I see so much intelligence, experience, and compassion. I feel very privileged to be among such a talented, Godly peer group.

But have you ever wondered why, if we can all write with so much clarity, passion, and knowledge... And if 240 people "like" all the super-incredible-wisdom we're sharing... WHY THE HECK DO WE ALL KEEP MAKING SUCH STUPID MISTAKES OVER AND OVER AGAIN???!!!

I'll gladly use myself as an example. I was raised a Christian all my life. Grew up in the church and parochial schools, Vacation Bible school, Sunday school, Sunday Vacation Bible school, etc. I knew what was right and wrong from top to bottom, left to right.

But boy, did I ever make some stupid mistakes. And I still keep making them!!! Why do we: put off that huge stressful task that we could easily accomplish a little at a time, but NNNOOOO, we keep putting it off until the last minute and then nearly kill ourselves in the last hours before the project is due. We know that big exam is 3 weeks away... but spending another 2 hours here on CC instead of studying is just too tempting to resist. We know we shouldn't ingest that particular substance, but it just LOOKS SO GOOD or helps us calm down, chill out, or "come out of our shell."

We KNOW that person or situation is wrong for us/dangerous/will cause us to compromise our faith, but hey, I can handle it--besides, I work so hard, I deserve to have a little fun.

We all know better. We all preach to others about what's right and wrong. We all impress the world with our vast storage of what we know and what we've been through.

So why on earth are we repenting for the same sins we go back to over and over again? Can we just chalk it up to sin? Not caring? Ignorance? Rebellion?

If we all know so much, why don't we do what we're so good at talking about?

(As usual, the poll is anonymous and multiple choice.

I can't help but lol at little at this, and yet you're right. We know (to a degree, and not all of us) what's right, but all do what's wrong (even the best of us).

It's actually quite difficult to say 'why'. Easy to ask...easy to immediately point to this or that...hard to really and truly know, define, and change.

A large part of it is sin, just as Paul talked about in Romans 7, but you can't just blame everything on sin and satan to go about your merry (or not so merry..) way. A great deal of it has to do with ourselves. I believe God told us through scripture that 'no one is tempted beyond what they can bear' and that 'there's always a way out' ...but we still do the wrong thing.

Why? Again it's hard...maybe because the Godly part of us hates sin, but the worldly part loves it. We have both which are constantly fighting in us, and just as the 'old Indian' tale about the wolves, the one you feed is the one that will win. Nonetheless, we often do the wrong thing...

Are we drawn to it? Apparently... Do we have a 'natural leaning' or 'inclined tendency' toward sin or the wrong thing? Very likely...

So what then? How do we stop?

Well...*sigh*...it's really not that easy. It's simple, but not easy. To NOT sin, all you have to do is choose the other option. You murder or not murder...so don't murder. ...but I hate the person! ...well, work on that. ...but they're hurting people... Well, since when is it our place to judge? ...but I want to! ...well, since when did getting or doing what you want really help anyone?

Seriously...IT'S HARD...NOT FUN...AND ALMOST ALWAYS TEDIOUS! That's just the long the short of it. God has to convict us of sin, and then once we realize, we have to make the choice and take the action to change.

Well, that sounds simple (as it is), but the reality is complicated. You mean I constantly have to fight how I feel, what I think, things around me, or even more than that??! Quite possibly...yes. We might need a rest, but sin never does. It's relentless, and the bigger you 'built that flame' over your life...the harder it will be to overcome. It's like climbing a mountain of stones you threw, or building the wall you have to somehow now tear down.

Of course, without God, it's impossible! ...with Him, though, it's not. ..but how many of us REALLY ARE trying to CONSTANTLY live with God? When we do the wrong thing (if we're even mindful of God at the time...), we seem to say...'Hey God, could you look the other way for a minute?" ...then we feel guilty about it...so that often pushes you farther away from God. You vow not to ever do it again, come into the same situation...do the same thing...and the cycle continues...just like with addictions...

You want my honest answer on why we do stupid things? I don't know...

Maybe we're fools...Maybe we really are corrupted by sin in our nature...maybe we're lazy and just really don't want to do all the hard work of 'the right way'...maybe we're selfish and feel better or enjoy more the wrong thing (for now...) than the right...maybe we're Hedonist and always do what makes us 'feel good'...maybe we're apathetic and generally don't give a *you can imagine the various words here*...maybe it has to do with the options on your poll...

Or maybe...there are other reasons. Maybe we've given up. Maybe it's the very core of who you are that decides how you think, feel, speak, act...and what is the state of that core? Maybe that's why Jesus was always more concerned about it than what was going on physically or socially...

My answer...I don't know. All I know is that we don't have to do the wrong, mostly understand that, but seldom choose to do so.

Most of us live out of how we feel or what we want, verses the 'right way' or what we really need. Philosophers have debated about it for millennial. Scholars have studied and written about it. Scientists of various type have tried to analyse, categorize, and diagnose it. We've all gained insights. We all have clues. We've all seen various results...but we still don't know.

If you take the example of Adam and Eve...or even Lucifer...who were beings (if you take the stories literally) that lived in there VERY prescience of GOD (like...face to face...) and held great power and control of many things...but even they 'fell'...they chose something other than God...they wanted more...(for Satan, God's throne...for Adam and Eve...knowledge of Good and Evil)

Why? How could they literally be WITH God...and yet not want him, but something else...? I don't know..why do we do the same thing? It's a mystery, I suppose, but nonetheless...there are both current, future, and eternal consequences for doing so.

 

[AsifinPassing]

...a apologize for all those typos and what likely will be this double post...yeesh! Anyway...I think you get the point. Only God knows...

 

[Nautilus]

i try to live well, and assume the majority of good wipes out the minority of bad, especially when my bad is very unintrusive and hurts no one.

 

[Liamson]

Dumb mistakes

Hearing the Devil, Its what makes sin a slippery slope...

"Let me ask you a question, do you REALLY want the BEST for yourself?

Do you feel like YOU of all people, DESERVE it?

What have you EVER accomplished in your WHOLE LIFE, that lead you to think YOU are CAPABLE of reaching anything BEST for yourself?

When you see a woman(or man) with an innocent HEART, don't YOU realize that if you get too CLOSE they will see the UGLINESS inside you?

How much FORGIVENESS for your PAST can one person afford to give YOU, when they cannot even begin to UNDERSTAND your FAILURES?

Instead you find...
You have been WEIGHED
You have been MEASURED
And you have been found WANTING


Whatever beauty you should find, whoever's heart should captivate you with its depth and its truth, whatever good and noble character you would fall for, DON'T. They do not deserve to be burdened by the agony of YOU eventually breaking their heart. Disappointing them with your eventual failure, because its who you are. And a Leopard cannot change its spots.

You are not worthy of Real Love. It is only for the people who have spent their lives toiling in pursuit of virtue and have EARNED the RIGHT to taste the fruit of their Hard Labor. For You there is only compromise, scraps, shame, settling and everything else you have brought upon yourself. Leave the Beauty for the Beautiful, Innocence for the Innocent and True Love for the Truly Lovable." --SATAN

I know its not true but, most of the really bad choices I've made in my life I can trace back to believing that I did not deserve to make the best and right choice. Its literally painful. Its like a tight stabby feeling of guilt and shame, knowing that I've made a terrible mistake and that I'm going to have to live with it.

When I had the Choice between buying a Red Porsche Boxster and a gray Mini Cooper S, I didn't choose the car I fell in love with. I compromised and chose Mini. I felt like I was not the kind of person who deserved to drive something TRULY close to my heart, instead I felt like I deserved to settle. The Mini was a nightmare in every way possible. I genuinely regret many of my choices because I knew what was right and what was wrong and I chose to do what is wrong, knowing that I would be overyjoyed in the pursuit of what is Good.

This is my Answer because I did not find Cognitive Dissonance in the multiple choice section.

 

[seoulsearch]

The interesting thing about life is that to God, the highest form of love, the Red Porsche, may come in the form of a blood-stained cross. God's best choices for us, and the right choices, do not necessarily mean happiness. In fact, if the Bible is any indication, God's very best and highest forms of love in people's lives often came in ways that the person was totally against and did not want.

I'm truly sorry for the things everyone has gone through for both good-intentioned and downright bad choices... We've all been there.

And funny you should mention car-shopping, Liamson... I have a story to tell about that, but I'm saving it for another thread.

*Mental Note* Must remember Cognitive Dissonance as a choice in a future poll.

 

[ijustwanttheTruth]

i kick myself so hard when i make a mistake i swore i wouldn't make again.
i usually go into a vicious spiral of self hatred until i get over the shock of it.
i like to think it's because whatever it was in my spirit/soul that vowed to never do that again was in response to the repercussions...whether they were physical, emotional, or spiritual.

and those negative repercussions are what fade from my memory. and i am left with the same choice. and i forget the lessons i have learned. until i possibly make them enough times that i choose to make a note of the negative repercussions and move on to the NEXT mistake... (facepalm)

i guess it depends on whether we are talking mistake like sin, or just mistake like 'whoopsi-daisy i chose the wrong car'

the reason we repeat sin? the mystery of iniquity. against all reason and logic, we choose wrong. it's a mystery.

the reason we repeat other life mistakes? we are forgetful beings and like julianna said...we don't get to see all the pieces of the puzzle. God does. if we could see past present and future and all the pros and cons laid out at the outset of every decision to be made...i feel like we might make the right choice. but there's a partial blindness that is ever on these mortal frames.

oh the humanity of it all. blessed are those who have eyes to see. blessed we will be when the blindness is removed. i'm about ready to get out of this body- how 'bout you guys?

p.s. there are so many options in the poll that i am at a loss to choose one
p.p.s. i said the word repercussions three times in this comment

 

[seoulsearch]

p.s. there are so many options in the poll that i am at a loss to choose one

No need to choose just one... I almost always try to make my polls multiple choice, so you can choose whichever fits.

I can relate to everything you wrote, Ijustwant... and it's funny how we think the self-punishment will make us "do better" but it only winds up making things worse... I guess that's another reason why only God can help us change.

 

[pinkstix56]

Seoulsearch I don't know if you remember me but I remember you! anyways i love your posts...for me I think that I just set myself up sometimes. I'm also too hard on myself to do good ALL the time. *sigh* I still repent every day.

 

[seoulsearch]

Seoulsearch I don't know if you remember me but I remember you! anyways i love your posts...for me I think that I just set myself up sometimes. I'm also too hard on myself to do good ALL the time. *sigh* I still repent every day.

Hi Pink!! Whatup, girl? Yes, I remember you, beautiful as you are. And I can relate to repenting everyday! We're all in this together.